A Trench Collapse Results in Death and Jail Time

Enhancing Safety Through Shared Experience

At YDE Safety we believe that sharing knowledge is a powerful tool for change. Considering recent severe incidents at workplaces, including those that have tragically resulted in loss of life, we are taking an important step to educate and inspire a commitment to safety that transcends our organization.

1.?????? Introduction

This Lessons Learned Newsletter shares a summary of a workplace fatality that includes a young worker killed in a trench, a business owner awaiting jail sentencing, high OSHA fines, and the closing of a construction company.

NOTE 1: The information shared in this newsletter has been taken directly from OSHA’s 514-page documentation of this incident. We have provided information exactly how it appears in OSHA’s documentation in quotations throughout this newsletter.

NOTE 2: Our goal is not blasting companies or people. Throughout names that are removed and replaced with another word will be in italic. We will use titles or general terms Owner, Project Manager, Employee, Excavator Operator, and Company.

2.?????? Incident Description

“On November 16, 2021, the installation crew began work in the west trench at approximately 8

AM. They entered the trench throughout the day, installing two sewer pipes in the morning and

one in the afternoon, each about 16 feet in length. The Owner arrived onsite at around 9 AM, spoke to the Project Manager and observed the crew working in the unprotected trench several times throughout the day. At around 10 AM, the Owner entered the west trench (without protections in place) to take measurements, and he entered again around 1 or 2 PM. At around 4 PM, while the installation crew was working 80-90 feet from the manhole and egress point, the trench wall above them collapsed, burying the three workers.”

“Two were buried above their heads, and one was partially buried and able to quickly self-rescue. Multiple workers onsite entered the trench to assist with rescuing the two workers. First responders arrive at approximately 4:15 PM, and one of the buried workers was removed from the trench shortly after. At 5:30 PM, first responder reported the accident to OSHA. The remaining buried employee died of his injuries, and his body was recovered from the trench at around 6:30 PM.”

3.?????? Supporting OSHA Inspection Details (details appear in the order they are listed in OSHA’s report)

A. “OSHA visited the site on 11/17/21. Two trenches were open at the time: the west trench (the site of the fatality) and the east trench. After the OSHA Inspector met with the Company for the opening conference, the OSHA Inspector took several measurements of the west trench:

• Depth: 9-10’
• Width across: 8.5-9’ (at widest point)
• Length: 115’ total, 82’ at narrow portion
• Ramp on north end of trench: 29’ long
• South end of trench surrounding manhole: 16’ x 22’ x 9’ deep”

The OSHA Inspector returned to the site on 11/19/21 to meet the Owner and his Attorney. “The OSHA Inspector took three soil samples, video, and conducted a preliminary interview with the Owner. During the interview, the Owner claimed that the crew worked inside trench box when installing sewer pipe in the west trench on 11/16/21.” However, the OSHA Inspector did not observe any evidence of trench box scuff marks on trench walls, and the non-uniform dimensions of the current trench did not support the Owner’s claim that the trench box was in use. The OSHA Inspector also took several additional measurements at the site:

• Trench box: 6’ wide x 16’ long
• East trench ramp: ~20’ long
• East trench depth: 4’ at entrance, 8’ mid-way, 9-10’ next to manhole
• East trench length: 150’
• East trench width: 6-9’”

B.????? “A subpoena was served for the OSHA documents request to the Owner, with his Attorney as witness, as the Owner had not responded to the original document request due 11/18/21. The subpoena requested the following documents from the Company with a deadline of 12/3/21:

1. A copy of any and all canceled checks from all parties on the project showing payments to all contractors and workers on the project.
2. A copy of any and all permits and licenses for the project.
3. A copy of any and all invoices for safety equipment (i.e. trench boxes, shoring, harnesses, safety glasses, etc.) purchased and leased for use on the project by any party on the project. Please specify the name of the party that purchased or leased the safety equipment in addition to the name of the employer whose employee(s) used the safety equipment.
4. A copy of any and all documents regarding any inspections or audits of the job site performed by anyone to evaluate compliance with safety requirements or work rules, including contracts to perform such inspections or audits.
5. A copy of any and all results of any safety audits conducted on the project by an insurance company or third party.
6. A copy of any and all written work rules, safety and health programs, policies, standard operating procedures, and so on, in effect on the project.
7. A copy of any and all training plans utilized by all parties, employees, or independent subcontractors who are working, or have worked, on the project.
8. A copy of any and all training certificates issued to parties/workers who are working, or have worked, on the project, and any other documents showing that workers were trained.
9. A copy of any and all invoices for training given to parties/workers on the project.
10. A copy of any and all disciplinary records for violations of any work rules by any parties or workers that are working, or have worked, on the project.”

NOTE: The subpoena that was served listed 28 documents to be submitted to OSHA. The 10 listed were the most significant to this lessons learned newsletter.

1.?????? Employees: “A Worker stated that he had no prior experience digging or working in trenches, he had never received training related to trenching safety, and he was not familiar with OSHA trenching regulations, such as soil typing, protective systems, and spoil pile location requirements. He stated that he was never asked about his prior experience the Worker stated that when he told the Owner early in the project that he did not have trenching experience, the Owner said that it didn’t matter, he needed him. ?The Worker stated that he was unaware of his designation as a competent person or his responsibility to inspect trenches and ensure the crew was safe while working inside.”

“He did not know of anyone at the Company who would be considered a competent person, he did not perform trench inspections, and he had never seen anyone inspect the trenches for safety before employee entry. The Worker stated that there were not typically protections in place while the crew worked in the trenches; he never sloped his trenches, as he hadn’t heard of sloping before, and he didn’t know how. He said that the Owner brought the trench box onsite sometime before or in early September, and the crew used it for a few days total throughout the project, but it was never specified when they were required to use it.”

“It was used mostly in one trench after employees reported dirt falling on them on multiple occasions to the Owner. He said that the trench box was difficult to use; it was too heavy for most of the equipment to carry, and at 8 feet tall, it was too short for many of the trenches he dug. He stated that trenches were typically at least 10 feet deep, but they had to work in trenches over 20 feet deep on multiple occasions.”

“Many of the crew members’ primary language was Spanish, and they were unable to communicate directly with Management. Both English- and Spanish-speaking employees stated that they had never received safety training related to trenching, and they had no previous experience working in trenches. They were not aware of the hazards of working in unprotected trenches before doing such work, and they were not made aware of any work rules from the Company related to trenching safety, such as when and how the trench box was to be used.”

2.?????? Project Manager: The Project Manager stated his responsibilities “were to be onsite on a daily basis and provide updates on the project to the Owner throughout the day. He stated that he monitored engineering numbers, sometimes acted as foreman, and operated equipment as needed.” He stated, “his day-to-day duties included daily safety meetings, site monitoring, and weekly reports.” The Project Manager ‘stated that this was his first large-scale project working with trenches greater than 4 feet in depth. He stated that he had previous experience with “sloping and stepping” trenches, but he did not have any safety training related to OSHA regulations.”

“He did not have experience with trench boxes or shoring, nor was he familiar with OSHA standards related to tabulated data, soil typing, or when trench protections were required. The Project Manager stated that since the Owner had decades of experience in “deep Trench”, he was in charge of “excavation methods, setting up the site” and acted as the “technical advisor on excavation operations and techniques”.

The Project Manager did not think that the crew understood the hazards of trenching/excavations. The Project Manager said the Excavator Operator “was responsible for inspecting trenches, making sure they were safe before worker entry, and deciding protective system to be used.” He also stated that the Excavator Operator “rarely used the trench box, and when he sloped trenches, he did not follow OSHA requirements; he “sloped by gravity” (not an industry-recognized term or practice), meaning he dug one cut and let the sides slough off, and employees then worked in those unprotected trenches.”

3.?????? Owner: “The Company has been in operations for about 25 years, and the Owner has worked in the trenching and excavation industry for about 30 years. The Owner said that he was familiar with OSHA trenching standards. He stated that he assigned the Project Manager and Excavator Operator to provide safety training to the crew; he claimed they were familiar with OSHA excavation standards, and they were responsible for communicating those requirements to the crew. He claimed the Project Manager and Excavator Operator were the competent persons responsible for inspecting the trenched.”

In questions about provided safety training to crew members, “the Owner claimed that all crew members on the project were “independent contractors” and not employees of the Company.” ?

NOTE: The information provided in this section is presented just as it is in the OSHA Inspector’s Report, OSHA Worksheet Details, and official Fatality/Catastrophe Report.

4.?????? Citations and Notification of Penalty

When you read through the listed citations you will notice there was an inspection on 11/16/2021 following the trench collapse that resulted in a fatality. You will also notice OSHA conducted another inspection of this company on 12/20/2021 and observed some of the same violations they observed less than a month earlier.

5.?????? Lessons Learned

Rather than give a bunch generic of scenarios as we provide a detailed list of lessons that can be learned from this situation, we’ve taken recommendations provided by the OSHA Inspection through email to the Owner.

“Like I said in the email, I’ll go over the violations we found during the investigation and what we need to see from the Company as far as abating those hazards, and then I’ll go over what actions the Company needs to take after receiving the citations.”

“Confirm first: can we deliver citations to the Michael Best Denver office? If not, where should we send them (not a PO box)?”

Launch into the violations:

We found 4 violative conditions from our investigation:

1.?????? Egress access

A.????? “Whenever workers are in trenches, they cannot be working more than 25 feet from a safe egress point. We found the ladder on the day of the fatality, which was the only egress point from the trench at that time, was about 90 feet from the workers, on the south end by the manhole, which is obviously much too far away.”

B.????? “You are digging very long trenches on this project, so this is probably something you’ll run into again. Your options for abatement:

1. Train and enforce with your people the rules for egress locations,
2. Make sure you have multiple ladders onsite that are the appropriate height, and place them strategically, so you don’t have to worry about moving them so often, less likely to run into the problem again.”

2.?????? Worker training

A.????? “OSHA says that all workers have to be instructed in the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions, and the applicable regulations to control the hazards in their work environment.”

B.????? “We found that none of your crew members were knowledgeable about trenching hazards before they started work in trenches, they didn’t know of A4S rules related to trenching safety, and they were not aware of OSHA rules in place to protect them.”

1. “So, the Company needs to train its workers on trenching hazards before they get into trenches:
2. That trenches can cave‐in, what conditions can lead in to a cave‐in, and that cave‐ins can severely injure or kill them.
3. They need to be informed about OSHA’s rules related to trenches
4. With Spanish speaking workers, it makes it all the more important not just to make sure that adequate training happens, but that you verify that it was understood, and then you enforce those rules to make sure they’re followed.”

3.?????? Competent inspections

A.????? “OSHA says that when doing trench work, you have to have a person onsite who is capable of identifying hazards, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them.”

B.????? “Daily inspections of excavations for evidence of a situation that could result in possible cave‐ins, or other hazardous conditions. Needs to happen prior to the start of work and as needed throughout the shift, e.g. after every rainstorm or other hazard‐increasing occurrence.”

C.????? “So you need to have that person to start with, and then they need to inspect trenches and remove workers from hazardous situations.

1. We did not find that someone that met the definition of a competent person was onsite. No one onsite was knowledgeable enough about trenching hazards or OSHA rules that need to be followed to keep people safe. So without a competent person onsite, you can’t meet the inspection requirement to begin with.
2. We also didn’t find that people were doing inspections either, but your first problem is the lack of competent person.”

D.????? Abatement: “Your competent person needs to be knowledgeable about trenching hazards and OSHA trenching regulations, so likely the Company will need to provide some thorough training, and again, verification and observation that the competent person can and will fulfill their responsibilities.”

4.?????? Protective systems

A.????? “Very straightforward – if it’s deeper than 5 feet, and not solid rock, you need to have something in the trench to protect workers from cave‐ins.”

B.????? “You have a trench box, so that’s good. Use it.”

C.????? “When that box can’t be used, if the trench is too deep or just outside of the specs of that box for whatever reason, make sure your competent person and operator understands the other systems that can be used.”

D.????? ?“Obviously we found that a protective system was not in use in that trench. the Company needs to make sure that the crew is never again entering unprotected trenches.”

E.?????? “Fixing that encompasses all of the other things we talked about, getting employees trained, having that competent person.”

So those were our findings. I'll launch about next steps, unless there are any questions about the nature of the violations and abatement.

7.?????? Summary

This tragic incident offers several critical lessons for companies to improve their commitment to safety and prevent similar fatalities:

1. Proper Training and Certification: It's evident that the lack of proper training for the Project Manager, Excavator Operator, and workers was a significant contributing factor to the accident. Companies must ensure all personnel, especially those in high-risk environments like construction, are adequately trained and certified in their respective roles and safety protocols.
2. Implementation of Protective Systems: The absence of any protective systems in the trench was a major oversight. If companies are putting team members in excavations that are 5 feet deep or more, there has to be some form of cave-in protection in place before they enter.
3. Regular Safety Inspections and Compliance: The failure to conduct safety inspections was a critical lapse. Regular, thorough inspections by a competent person are essential to identify and rectify potential hazards before tragedy strikes. Compliance with occupational safety regulations, such as those enforced by OSHA, is not optional but a requirement and necessity.
4. Adequate Egress: The lack of proper means of egress in the trench made it difficult for workers to escape in an emergency. Companies must ensure that adequate (height appropriate and within 25 feet of each worker) and easily accessible egress routes are always available at worksites.
5. Accountability and Leadership Responsibility: The owner's knowledge of these safety issues and failure to address them highlights the importance of accountability and leadership responsibility in workplace safety. Leaders at all levels must prioritize safety and act decisively to first prevent safety shortcomings and proactively protect workers from potential safety hazards.
6. Company Culture that includes Safety: Beyond policies and procedures, fostering a company culture that includes safety where every employee feels responsible for their safety and that of their coworkers is crucial. This involves regular training, open communication about safety concerns, and a non-punitive approach to reporting and addressing safety issues.
7. Legal and Financial Repercussions: The severe legal and financial consequences faced by the owner, including a substantial fine and jail time, along with the closure of the company, serve as a stark reminder of the grave consequences of neglecting workplace safety.

This incident underscores the paramount importance of safety in the workplace. Companies should view this as a wake-up call to develop and implement safety procedures, enforce safety protocols, provide comprehensive training, and cultivate a company culture that includes safety to prevent such tragedies in the future.

8.?????? Be Proactive: Take Action!

Let's Commit to Workplace Safety: Considering the details shared in this incident and the continued rise of trench collapse tragedies, we urge all companies, especially those in high-risk industries, to renew their commitment to workplace safety.

This is a critical moment to reassess and strengthen your safety protocols. Invest in comprehensive training for all employees, ensure the implementation of protective systems, conduct regular safety inspections, and foster a company culture where every individual prioritizes and champions safety.

Remember, safety is not just a regulation; it's a responsibility to protect lives!